1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods for improving social interaction, and more particularly, methods, systems and computer programs for bringing together web users with common interests.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally speaking, Internet online groups provide a communication tool for group members to exchange online group-related information. The online group is a tool which is a hybrid between an electronic mailing list and a threaded Internet forum. In other words, group messages can be read and posted by e-mail or on the group homepage. In addition, members can choose whether to receive individual, daily digest or special delivery e-mails, or simply read group posts on the group's web site. Groups can be created with public or member-only access. Some groups are simply announcement bulletin boards, to which only the group moderators can post, while other groups are discussion forums. One example of an Internet online group service is Yahoo! Groups™.
Typically, a moderator controls membership in the group. Users have to go through a sign-in process to become members of the group, and users continue membership in the group until the group disappears or the user opts to end membership. Users often have multiple interests at a given point in time, and many of these interests can be temporary, such as the soccer world cup, a family wedding, a personal problem, a health issue, etc. It is cumbersome for users to keep joining and separating from groups in order to gather useful online group information.
It is in this context that embodiments of the invention arise.